Concern Over Common Core Is Distracting?

I attended the SC Education Oversight Committee's two day retreat August 8-9, 2013; I was dumbfounded by what I heard.

South Carolina Parents Involved In Education (SCPIE) had become aware of a draft resolution involving a recommendation on Common Core Standards. We felt it necessary to email the members of the EOC (Education Oversight Committee) to inform them of citizens' concerns over Common Core Standards. As involved citizens we exercised our right to actively engage with our EOC members.

At the opening of the meeting, Chairman Neil Robinson began by letting it be known he had received dozens of emails from critics who misunderstood the resolution that was being presented. Robinson stated,

“I'm pulling the resolution that I asked you (the committee members) to look at, “because it got so mischaracterized that it's really frustrating and very distracting to be receiving all these messages about something that wasn't going to happen, that really wasn't on the agenda.” 

Really? Citizens exercising their right to engage in our government's decision is "very distracting"?

Dr. Zais, SC State Superintendent of Education sent Mr. Robinson a letter dated August 6, 2013 in which he stated,

“… there are several open-ended conditions in the current resolution. How low does the state graduation rate need to be to trigger the first condition? How is a “threat” to local control defined? What “independently verified data” will be used by the EOC? When will the EOC make a decision about the CCSS?

Did Mr. Robinson find Dr. Zais' letter very distracting as well? Did Dr. Zais misunderstand the resolution? Doubtful.

Here is part of the resolution:

“If at any point during implementation of the Common Core State Standards, independently verified data documents that: Students are not graduating from public schools in South Carolina able to compete globally for jobs in the 21st century or that students are not college and career ready; or If local decisions about what and how to teach are threatened to be taken from the state districts and schools, then, the EOC may recommend to the State Superintendent of Education and the State Board of Education that South Carolina, in collaboration with higher education, revises its English Language Arts and Mathematics standards to create new South Carolina College and Career Readiness Standards in English Language and Mathematics.”

You be the judge. Wouldn't you say SCPIE members needed to be writing emails, and attending this retreat? Wouldn't you say local control has already been threatened by accepting Common Core Standards?

Johnnelle Raines